8:19 am, March 24, 2023
Car dealers offering vehicles on a ‘sold as seen’ basis have been issued with a strong warning after a dodgy salesman in south Wales was handed a hefty fine.
Nicholas Ward, of CMB Value Car Sales in Newport, admitted to a single count of unfair trading in relation to the sale of a used Peugeot 308.
The South Wales Argus reports that the outfit use disclaimers such as ‘sold as seen’ and ‘no refund policy’ in a bid to skirt customer regulations.
When the vehicle went wrong, just days after the sale was completed, Ward, 55, and his company refused to step in.
The customer, who has not been identified, was therefore made to fund repair work himself, which also led to further faults being uncovered.
In response to the incident, the buyer took on – and beat – CMB at civil court after receiving advice from trading standards.
Since then, criminal charges have followed and Ward recently found himself in the dock at Cwmbran Magistrates’ Court.
He pleaded guilty to unfair trading but claimed he had not been aware of customer protection laws at the time.
Consumers are protected by law under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008.
After hearing all the evidence, magistrates handed Ward a £2,000 fine and ordered him to pay £857 costs as well as £849,49 in compensation to the car buyer.
In addition, CMB based in the Mill Parade region of Newport, was fined £2,000 and ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £190.
The prosecution was brought by Newport City Council and James Clarke, the authority’s cabinet member for strategic planning, housing and regulation, says the result sends a strong message.
He said: ‘It is vitally important that anyone owning or running a business makes themselves familiar with consumer legislation.
‘As this case shows, ignorance is no excuse. I’m pleased that the magistrates recognised how serious these offences were and that our trading standards team were able to help this customer get justice both in the criminal and civil courts.’
According to Companies House, Ward resigned as the sole director of CMB in April of last year and the firm is no longer trading.
Main image: Cwmbran Magistrates’ Court (John Grayson)
